Validation Credits
Phone and email validation draw from a single shared credit pool. Every paid plan includes a monthly allowance, and you can top up at any time.
How Credits Work
Each time Basin validates a phone number or email address, one credit is consumed from your pool. It does not matter which feature triggered the check — phone and email validation share the same balance.
Example: A form with both phone and email validation enabled will use two credits per submission (one for the phone field, one for the email field). If either feature uses the Client + Server stage, that field uses two credits — one for the client-side check and one for the server-side check.
Credit Priority
Basin always uses your monthly credits first. Purchased credits only start being drawn on once your monthly allowance is exhausted for the current billing period.
| Credit Type | Resets? | When Used |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly allowance | Yes, each billing cycle | First |
| Purchased credits | Never expire | After monthly allowance runs out |
Monthly Allowances by Plan
Paid plans include a fresh credit allowance at the start of each billing cycle. Free plan users start with no monthly credits but can purchase top-up packs at any time.
| Plan | Credits per Month |
|---|---|
| Free | — |
| Starter | 100 |
| Growth | 300 |
| Pro | 1,000 |
| Agency | 3,000 |
Monthly credits that go unused do not roll over to the next period.
Purchasing Additional Credits
If you need more credits than your plan includes, you can purchase a one-time top-up pack. Purchased credits are added to your balance immediately and never expire.
Top-Up Packs
Three pack sizes are available. Larger packs come at a lower per-credit cost, so buying in bulk is more economical if you use validation heavily. Current pricing is shown in your billing settings.
How to Buy
- Go to Account → Billing
- Scroll to the Validation Credits section
- Select the pack you want
- Click Buy Credits
Basin will charge your card on file immediately via a one-time Stripe invoice. Credits are added to your balance as soon as the payment succeeds.
Auto Top-Up
Auto top-up lets Basin automatically purchase a credit pack on your behalf when your balance runs low, so validation never silently stops working.
Setting Up Auto Top-Up
- Go to Account → Billing → Validation Credits
- Enable Auto Top-Up
- Set a threshold — Basin will trigger a purchase when your total remaining credits fall at or below this number
- Choose which pack to purchase when the threshold is reached
- Save your settings
When the threshold is hit, Basin charges your card on file and emails you a confirmation. If the charge fails, you will receive a failure notification email so you can update your payment method before credits run out.
Choosing a Threshold
Set your threshold high enough to cover the time between when Basin detects the low balance and when you next need credits. For high-volume forms, consider setting it to at least a few days' worth of expected validation volume.
Low Balance Alerts
Basin sends email notifications to keep you informed:
- Low balance warning — sent when your remaining credits fall near zero
- Credits depleted — sent when your balance reaches zero and validation checks are being skipped
If auto top-up is enabled, Basin will attempt the purchase before sending the depleted notice.
What Happens When Credits Run Out
When your credit balance reaches zero:
- Validation checks are skipped — submissions are still accepted normally
- No validation log events are written for those submissions
- Basin sends you a credits depleted email notification
Validation resumes automatically once you purchase more credits or your monthly allowance resets.
Related Features
- Phone Validation — configure phone number verification
- Email Validation — configure email address verification
- Validation Overview — feature overview and plan comparison